


Day by Day

by Souhaiteavecmoi



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012), The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: BAMF Darcy Lewis, BAMF Hermione Granger, Budapest, Coulson Lives, Crossover, Elemental Magic, Everything after Avengers does not exist because reasons, F/M, Fury and Kingsley are Bros, Gen, I Will Go Down With This Ship, M/M, Superheroes and Magic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-05-19
Updated: 2014-07-03
Packaged: 2017-12-12 08:42:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/809607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Souhaiteavecmoi/pseuds/Souhaiteavecmoi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's a pretty crazy world out there. Sometimes, even the best superheros need a bit of magic in their lives. There are some things you can't share without ending up liking each other, and stopping evil is one of them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Staying Dead is SO overrated

**Author's Note:**

> Some days can be tough.

The man in black stared through the glass, medics swarming around a prone figure. Irregular beeping and hushed whispers floated in the air In his hand were stacks of paper, all irrelevant other than the words "Beyond our help." A sigh escaped him, and he pulled out his phone.

"Fury"

"Royal"

"I heard about what happened in New York. My counterpart should be sending aid within hours. I'm sure you understand that I am much more limited in what I can do."

Fury snorted. "The damn Statute of Secrecy? Oh, no, I understand that just fine. I need more of a personal favor."

"A favor?" he could almost hear the eyebrow go up in question.

"It's Coulson. He was attacked by Loki. We can't help him thanks to all the magic. I know it's not quite the same stuff but....."

"For Coulson..... I'll see what I can do. You'll have to bring him here, by the place where we first met. We'll need some samples too. And, I'll be calling in that favor."

He smirked "Wouldn't expect anything less."

lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll

"The tea still tastes like crap, I don't understand why this whole country's so obsessed with it."

Kingsley merely sipped his calmly. "For someone who's country runs on McDonald's....."

"Ha. Now, have you heard anything?"

"We've gotten some readings, they think he'll be okay. Harry pulled some muscle with Norway, got specialists coming in."

"Thank god, or Asgardian aliens, that Coulson manages to get involved in every fucking piece of trouble coming his way. Potter's a good connection to have."

"Death Eaters, Hydra, all part of the same insane group of extremists aren't they? Now, about that favor...."

Fury gave him an exasperated look. "A whole 6 hours Royal. Almost a record."

"What do you know about Hermione Granger?"

llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll

"Okay, Luna, just check that last set of runes and make sure they didn't get messed up.  I need to..." Hermione faltered. "I need to do something. Um..."

"Take a break. Relax? Bask in your utter awesomeness?" She whirled around, only to see her best friend smirking at her.

She bit back her smile, and retorted “You're early. And you're never early." After ten years with him, she knew that being on time was more than he could really manage.

Harry wrapped an arm around her, smiling. "I figured you would be freaking out for no reason, and thought maybe I could help."

She raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, "It's only the only chance we have of getting Sirius back. Forgive me, but I think I'm allowed to freak out."

"Just trying means a lot for me, alright? You can't beat yourself up if it doesn't work," he replied, giving her his signature puppy dog eyes. She groaned and turned away.

"Okay, okay. We're almost done, so if you want to just get ready, it should be okay," she said, trying to restack the dozens of books littering the floor.

"You know Hermione, there wouldn't be so many Glibbers flying around if you were just calmer," said Luna, peering around the shelf.

"Yeah, Hermione. Glibbers, everywhere!" Harry ducked when she tried to smack his head. "I'm leaving. Merlin, woman."

Hermione turned pink, feeling Luna's piercing gaze upon her. She slowly turned around, and cocked her head. "Drop it." She knew Luna had a point, but really. There was so much to be done, and this seemed pointless to dwell on

Luna shrugged. "I'm not the one who is hiding her feelings, am I?" The blonde put an arm around her.  "You know, if you told him, it would be a lot easier."

Hermione sighed, her eyes focused on the enchanted window instead of Luna. "Lets just get this done okay? And maybe after, we can talk about this."

llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll

She fell to her knees next to Harry, the veil brushed aside to reveal a doorway swirling with greys, blacks, and something utterly beyond anything she recognized. The pull from it increased, the air filled with the whispers of pasts forgotten.

_Who dares try to open the gates of death?_

“I speak on behalf of the master of death,” she replied, gesturing to the cloak, ring and wand laid before her.

_And what does this master seek? Does he feel worthy enough to decide the fates of man?_

She took a breath, trying to calm herself. “He seeks justice for one who left the plane before his time, through the gateway while still alive.”

_He has been claimed by Death!_

“And the master of Death finds this unjust.”

_And who will pay the price for his return?_

She banished her Occulomency walls, even the natural barriers, letting her mind drift free. _I will pay whatever price you seek, no matter what it may be_ , she answered, letting her magic free.

_So it shall be._

lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll

It smelled like lemon. Like someone had lit a thousand candles to make her feel like she was trapped in a fruit

"Ms. Granger? Squeeze my hand if you can hear me."

Voices didn't appear in fruit did they? Maybe she should squeeze. It wouldn't be too bad if it truly was a fruit.

"Now, Ms. Granger, try to open your eyes."

But, she could sleep here. She was too tired to open her eyes. It wasn't that necessary, was it? But she was Hermione after all, and that meant she listened. So she opened her eyes.

"Good, now just rest while I get the minister," said a pale haze. She blinked. The haze was actually a man, with long blond hair, thin and short, who quickly left her sight.

"Hermione?"  

She turned her head again. “Hello Minister. Can I help you?”

He snorted. “It’s Kingsley to you, and while I admire you greatly, I think you might need a bit more rest.”

She tried to shrug, but it didn’t work. “You might be right, I guess. I remember what happened. Did Sirius.....?”

He smiled, placing a hand on hers. “Your experiment worked. Sirius Black is recovering at St. Mungo’s, although that isn’t where you are. You seemed to have made an exchange of sorts.”

She winced. “I offered to pay whatever price they sought in return for him.”

“Well,” he rubbed his forehead. “From what we can tell, your magic has disappeared. Now, we don’t know if it’s permanent or not, but the healers seem to think that eventually, it’ll come back. In its absence, something else seems to have manifested.”

Hermione liked information. This however, did not seem good. “And when you say manifested....”

He looked her in the eye. “Hermione Granger. It appears as if you are an elemental.”

She stared. Though about that statement. Stared again. “Elemental, as in can control various elements? Elemental, as in, hasn’t been seen here in centuries? Elemental, as in Wizengamot can order my death simply for existing?”

“Yes?”

“Oh. Okay. That’s.... interesting,” she said, feeling faint. Which was justified in the situation, at least in her mind.

“Yes, well, I do have a plan of sorts. Do you remember Phil Coulson?”


	2. Everything Can Be Blamed On Budapest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No one really knows what happened in Budapest. Although, in retrospect, it did seem a bit magical.

****

“God, is this really necessary? It’s been two weeks! TWO WEEKS!” yelled Iron Man, ducking a shot of fire.

“Somehow, Iron Man, I’ve found that most villains are less than accommodating when it comes to planning their takeovers,” replied Black Widow, her voice dry. Steve guessed that she was kind of used to this now, which made sense. They hadn’t had much down time since the Chitauri attack, although this one was pretty bad. The battle itself centered around Central Park, and while that meant less damage and no civilians at the moment, it didn’t change the fact that they were getting tired.

Well, except for Hulk. He seemed to like the smashing. And to be honest, that part seemed fun.

Steve rolled, trying to avoid the debris flying towards him. “Hawkeye, at your ten. Widow, see if you can corral a few for Stark to blast near the east side of the path.”

“Got it, Cap!” yelled Hawkeye over the comms, shooting blasting arrows at the large-too-scary-to-be-rodents that were terrorizing them. And while New York rats can be pretty crazy, they weren’t half metal, 7 feet tall, and breathing fire. Not unless pollution had gotten really bad over the past 70 years.

“Hey, incoming Cap!” Steve whipped his head around to see what looked like ice cream store hurdling towards him, only to be blasted away by a stream of water.

“Or not. Did anyone else see that?” asked Iron Man, twirling in the air with missiles shooting out from his shoulders, striking a pack of rats near the edge of the clearing.

Steve turned to see a young brunette woman in some kind of dark green gown creating a wall of water to block a rodent attack, before pushing the stream back at it. Her eyes were covered in a fancy masquerade mask.

“Seems friendly, but I don’t recognize her,” replied Hawkeye from his perch.

“I don’t think you’re in any position to deny assistance,” said another voice in the comms.

But that couldn’t be.....

“Agent?!?! What the fuck? I don’t think my technology reaches the underworld.”

“Well spotted. I’m quite alive, and I promise explanations when you finish this up. And she’s on your side.”

Steve dodged a hot dog cart, and flung his shield towards a pack closing in on Natasha. A hail of icicles followed it, hitting the rodents but avoiding the Widow. “We’ll take any help we can get. But they told us you were dead Sir. That’s isn’t okay.”

Coulson laughed, the sound echoing tinnily through the comms. “Until a couple days ago, no one thought I would be anything else. Now, you all look pretty sloppy. Don’t tell you’ve lost your touch without me.”

The team fought back harder, wanting to find out what had happened to the supposedly dead handler. Things seemed to come together much faster at that point, especially with Coulson’s instructions. Tony managed to create a large pit that they were able to lure the animals into, and the brunette erected large ice walls to keep them in. The fountain on the other hand, was now utterly empty.

A SHIELD agent brought the quinjet over, and they all boarded, even the newcomer.

“And where might we be going?” inquired an exhausted Bruce. “This isn’t the way to the tower.”

“Helicarrier. The Director wants to see all you.”

“And won’t that be oodles of fun,” muttered Tony, who had elected to fly with them. He claimed it was because the wind was bad outside, but Steve could tell from his sidelong glances that he didn’t like the idea of his team alone with the unknown brunette. The added news about Coulson had put all of them on the edge.

They flew in silence the rest of the way, with the exception of Tony whispering to Bruce what had happened while the Hulk had been out, and it wasn’t until they filtered into the large conference room that the others spoke again.

“Director,” acknowledged Steve, figuring that, as the leader, he shouldn’t start with “What the hell?”

Tony saved him the trouble. “What the hell? Is Agent that 007 that dying isn’t his thing? And where is he?”

Fury gave them a look, which somehow was much scarier than expected despite only having one eye involved. “We didn’t intend for him to be back into active duty so soon, and his caretaker is a bit zealous -” the brunette laughed. “ - and she wants him to rest up a bit. He’ll be here soon enough. Before then, there are other things to discuss.  If you would, Miss Granger.”

The girl smiled, and inclined her head towards Fury. “Of course, Director. Although, I believe some of us have met before, haven’t we? Or did you forget me so quickly Naomi?” Her British accent, while familiar to Steve, varied enough from Peggy’s that Steve managed to control his surprise.

Natasha smiled, a soft one that looked natural. It was strange to see it directed to someone not on the team, and Steve wished it wasn’t. But trust was not something won easily from Natasha.

“How could I? I had my suspicions, but you can understand why I would have a hard time.”

The brunette laughed, and removed her mask. Clint straightened up and exclaimed “Maya? What the hell?”

Tony, finally pissed at being out of the loop, spoke up too. “I love touching reunions as much as the next superhero, but who are you? And how do you know them?”

They all spoke together, with matching grins.

“Budapest.”

Tony thunked his head against the table, and Fury, who had his own grin, said with a laugh, “ I think they can get a bit more than that now.”

“Natasha, Coulson and I were in Budapest to track down and destroy this Hydra Stronghold,” explained Clint, now smiling. “They were trying to use some kind of artifact in a way similar to what they did with the Tesseract. We were running an op, and ran into another crew.”

“Clint - or Carson in the op - managed to get picked up by Hydra along with a friend of mine, because both of them have the ability to be complete idiots. They were both drugged enough that they couldn’t escape on their own. Phil, Natasha and I teamed up for extraction, which led us all over the city doing a variety of activities. We ended up there for a month after, flushing out some other groups we had caught sight of,” explained the brunette.

“You know, I don’t think they ever did figure out who stole the hot air balloon fleet, or how a 2 ton statue moved ten miles,” mused Natasha, smirking.

Maya, a name Steve thought might be fake too, laughed. “Yes, well, it isn’t like the police had the ability to follow our tracks. Anyway, we managed to get the two of them out of there, although not before they almost blew up a chocolate factory.”

“That doesn’t explain why you were there in the first place,” interjected Bruce, looking a little less uneasy then before. "It explains why everything gets blown up around Clint," said Tony in a faux undertone. Clint threw a cup at him.

The girl smiled at them, but Steve could tell when someone was choosing their words carefully. Now that she was closer, he could see the swirling patterns in the fabric. The green seemed almost scaly and glowed slightly. The entire thing seemed to radiate power - it might not be an armoured suit, but it seemed plenty powerful.

“My name is Hermione Granger, and I work for the British Government, or more specifically, the British Ministry of Magic.” 

“Magic?” asked Steve, wondering if this was some kind of future thing.

“Magic, yes. There are magic users all over the world, and most have their own form of government aside from the international body. The US doesn’t have many users outside of the Native American tribes. They tend to be more centralized in Canada. I believe Dr. Banner is the only one of you, other than the Director, who has any experience with our world.”

They all looked at Bruce, who shrugged. “I came by some things on my trips, but not much. This isn’t like Loki’s magic, is it?”

Hermione tilted her head, considering. “He is much less restrained in what he can do, and has much more power than the average user. However, his powers aren’t as strong on Earth as they are in Asgard. I do know people who could hold their own against him. We believe that magic is the same in every realm - a form of energy. Anyway, while my world is a secret - history can blur the lines. World War II for example,” she said, nodding towards Steve, “was fought on both fronts. Hitler had a friend, a wizard, who wanted the Reich to win only so he could easily enslave the world. He contained his attacks towards Britain, but we, like the rest of the world, won. I was tracking a terror group with ties to him with my friend when we came across Natasha, Phil, and Clint. Phil and I figured out each others identities, and we’ve helped each other out occasionally.”

“Okay, hang on,” Tony interjected. “Magic, okay, sure, fine. It exists, why the hell not? But why tell us though? Why were you helping us? And why now?”

She sighed. “While I do field work, I’m primarily more in the research sector. A friend of mine, he..... I suppose died is the correct term, but not really. He fell through one of the portals into whatever lies after death, and I was attempting to bring him back since he had never truly died. In the process, I exchanged my magic for his return. Or rather, my ability to wield magic. It might be permanent, it might not. In the process, some latent elemental abilities have come forward. In Britain, such powers haven’t been seen in centuries and are punishable for death. Unlike some people, I try to avoid actual death as much as possible. We were already sending aid for Phil, and it was decided that I may be able to be of assistance here."

Clint suddenly straightened. “So will Coulson be okay, then?” The rest of the team stared at her expectantly.

“Phil should be fine,” she stated calmly. “The Healer with him has dealt with worse.”

“Somehow,” drawled Natasha, “I get the feeling that it involves your friend, James.”

“Harry does have an innate ability to get hurt, which I think you saw. He managed to have all of the bones in one of his arms disappear when he was twelve,” she added, rolling her eyes. “Phil’s saved his neck a couple times, so Harry's actually the one who helped him get the resources he’ll need to recover."

"So if this is a secret, why tell us now?" asked Steve, trying to understand the way this government worked.

She smirked. "Technically, I'm not magical anymore and I can share what I want. Also, Director Fury has an understanding with the British Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt. He can’t overturn the law in question, but he can easily decide to send me out of the country. And my disappearance probably made quite a few people happy.”

Clint raised an eyebrow. “I’m a little afraid to ask.”

“You’ll have to wait, Barton. Someone I think you’ve all been waiting to see has just arrived.,” said Fury, cutting off the conversation. “I’ll leave you to it.”

He opened the metal door, and held it open for an elderly lady before leaving. She was barely five feet tall, but reminded Steve of the nuns he’d grown up with.

“Now, I know you’re all superheroes, but I don’t care if you’re descended from Gryffindor himself. He gets fifteen minutes, and then he goes back to his room and rests. And no matter what he says, if any of you give him coffee, I won’t hesitate to turn you into a frog. Do you all understand?” The woman glared at all of them, daring them to speak up.

“We wouldn’t want to do anything that would hurt him, ma’am. We’ll be on our best behavior, you have my word,” replied Steve, channeling what Clint called his “Aw shucks” voice. It was pretty powerful, even Hill fell for it. The lady nodded at him, relaxing slightly.

Tony opened his mouth, and then closed it, deciding that risking the wrath of the nurse would be a bad idea. The woman disappeared through the door and wheeled Agent Coulson back in. His face was gaunt and pale, the normal blank expression giving way to weariness. Next to Steve, Clint sucked in a shaky breath. Natasha seemed stoic, her own mask still in place.

Steve met Tony’s eyes, giving him a shrug that hopefully conveyed that breaking awkward silences was his job, not Steve’s.

“So, is it weird having your own handler now Agent?” asked Tony, smirking. Everyone in the room stared at him. Bruce covered his face in his hand, looking very exasperated.

Coulson attempted a smile. “I find that I now pity the other agents. Except for Barton, he deserved all of that.”

“I did not!” exclaimed Clint, looked affronted and delighted at the same time.

Natasha and Coulson both looked at him and raised an eyebrow

“Well, screw all of you,” responded Clint, trying to hide his grin.

“You’ve been missed Sir,” said Natasha, turning her attention to Coulson.

He laughed. “I believe you would have had to miss me for much longer, if not forever, if it wasn’t for the outside help. Thank you Miss Granger.”

Hermione stood up and walked over, stooping to give him a hug. “We’re just returning the favor,” she said gently. “No one deserves such a death, and most definitely not you, Phil Coulson.”

Her actions seemed to break a dam. The other team members all huddled around him, letting their emotions loose. Steve hung a little back, watching the interactions of the others. He hadn't known the man enough to get too involved in a reunion. Clint had his hand on Coulson’s shoulder, almost as if he was scared he would disappear again. Natasha stroked his hair, showing a compassion that she rarely exhibited. Tony began ranting about how outdated the wheelchair was to Bruce, who just shook his head laughing. He started plotting blueprints on one his gadgets. Coulson began protesting, claiming that rocket blasters were a little too much, as was an AI. Even with Thor missing, it made Steve feel happy to have a team again.

Hermione walked over to his side, letting the others crowd around Coulson. “You should be proud, Captain. You’re leading an amazing team.”

“Please, call me Steve, ma’am. I try to step away from the persona when I can. And you helped save one of my teammates - I think we owe you one.”

She smiled, and replied, “Well, then you have to call me Hermione. And we’ll just have to agree to disagree on that.”

He laughed, and nodded in agreement. He looked at her more closely. She was dainty in a way Peggy hadn’t been, someone who would prefer to be behind the books. Almost like Bruce, in a way. Her eyes though, seemed determined and passionate, but weary too. The artist in him noticed a faint scar traced across her left cheek.  “I don’t want to overstep, but while you don't seem like a fighter, I get the sense you've fought your share of battles.”

“They told me you were good with details.” Her tone sounded pleasant and light, letting him know she didn’t mind. “I was, and I promise I’ll tell you that story soon. But not today, I think everyone should be there for that.  

“I have a question,” interjected Tony again. “Does this mean you’re an Avenger now?”

Hermione looked at Coulson. He answered “For the time being, yes. Fury’s already spoken to Ms. Potts, and I think she’s set up your quarters. Since Miss Granger’s lost her magic, she should be fine around all of your technology. She might be able to help you all out - she has repeatedly been referred to her as the brightest witch of her age, and she’s been working in the field of quantum chemistry for some time, I believe.”

Tony leered at her. “Well, Miss Granger, I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship,” he said, waggling his eyebrows. Steve reached over and smacked his head. Hermione giggled.

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

Darcy poked her head through the lab door. Haphazard piles of paper covered the room, but she was used to it. She scanned carefully, and then- “Ah hah! Darcy Lewis spots the elusive scientist once again. Even it’s natural habitat is no match for her!” she exclaimed, dropping down next to Jane, who was curled up on the floor by a lab table.

The scientist was prodding some kind of machine, her eyes a little vacant. “I see we’ve passed the 48 hour mark, huh Janey? Come on, lets get you to bed.” Darcy hauled up the small woman, and towed her towards the elevator.

“Hey Jarv. Beam us up to our floor please.”

_Of course Miss Lewis_

“You’re the best, man,” she replied, shooting the ceiling a smile. The elevator stopped, revealing a young woman carrying boxes through the hallway. “Um, hi?”

“Oh, Hi!” exclaimed the girl. “I’m Hermione - I’ve just moved in. I’m temporarily helping out with the Avengers Initiative. You must be Darcy.”

Darcy grinned at her. “Yup. This is Jane,” she said, poking Jane in the side.

“mhephmm”

“That might have been a hi, I think. She’s been on a science spree.”

Hermione laughed. “I know the feeling. Well, after you’ve gotten her in bed, would you like to come in and talk for a bit? I’ve just met everyone else, and I’m in desperate need of a drink. I feel a little odd alone here, and Jarvis thought we would get along. He seems to really like you”

“Oh that, I can definitely do. And thanks Jarv, I love you too."

_It is always a pleasure Miss Lewis._

The two of them talked for a long time, swapping stories. Hermione had produced something called firewhiskey, which packed the punch of tequila in much more yummy form. An hour in, they decided to call Natasha over too, and the three of them got smashed. If alcohol in England was that good, Darcy was ready to hop the pond.

They didn’t talk about anything too serious though Hermione did fill her in on the whole magic thing.  They told her about Budapest, which made her fall over from laughing too hard. Just wait till the next time Clint decided to shoot her with a Nerf gun. Darcy was ready for him.

If she wasn't so drunk, Darcy would have been more afraid of Natasha. Other than Thor, the only Avenger she had really met was Tony Stark, who had hit on her in a vaguely comfortable way. But after you sing dirty Russian drinking songs with someone, they just aren't very scary. Well, not quite as scary, which for Natasha, was still pretty damn scary

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be more of a Darcy chapter, but Phil's just too cute.


	3. Story Time!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hermione finally spills the beans on that whole magic thing.

 

Darcy groaned. "Light is not good. Who the hell invented light?"

"Mother Nature?" responded Hermione, sounding way too chipper after that much alcohol. "There is a reason why trying to keep up with Natasha is not a good idea. Now, open up."

Darcy obediently opened her mouth, and Hermione tipped a liquid in her mouth. It tasted like honey, and minutes after she swallowed, everything just sharpened. A quick glance confirmed that she had crashed on Hermione's sofa the night before.

"What the...?"

"Hangover gone? You'd be surprised how wonderful natural ingredients can be," she said, smirking. "Now, Sunday brunch is kind of a thing for me back home, and I thought it might be nice to cook for everyone before we get to the more serious stuff. Is there like a central kitchen or anything?"

"We have a floor that we meet on, but the kitchen has never been used for more than popcorn," answered Natasha.

It's stocked with basic ingredients, and anything you need can be brought over in minutes, Miss Granger. However, I must warn you that the Avengers eat a rather ridiculous amount.

"Well, I've never cooked for less than fifteen," Hermione replied. "So lets change things up a bit. Besides, Phil's coming back here today, and team bonding sounds really good, yeah?"

“Works for me,” said Darcy, shrugging. “I now have an excuse to play my “I AM SHERLOCKED” playlist. British things are the best.” She pushed herself off the sofa, and began hunting down her stuff. Natasha stood watching her, all put together and poised.

Hermione laughed. “Well, I can’t say I disagree with you there. How about we all meet there in like an hour? That gives us time to get ready and not smell like a bar.

 

llllllllllllllllllllllllll

 

Once the others left, Hermione collapsed on her sofa, and dug out a small silver mirror from her bag. Drinking with them had helped ease her nerves a bit, but she still felt a little highstrung. It was just that the idea of adventures without her friends felt strange to her. She missed them.

“Luna Lovegood,” she said, speaking clearly into the mirror’s surface

It rippled for a few moments, then cleared to show the face of a beaming Luna.

“Hermione! How are you? How did it go?,” she asked, smiling vaguely yet warmly at her.

Hermione sighed, and ran a hand through her hair. “It’s been interesting, I guess? I don’t know Luna, I really miss everyone. It was nice to see Clint, Phil and Natasha again. But the others, well, I like them but I wish you and Harry were here too, you know? Stark’s channeling Draco - not awful, but rather arrogant. Dr. Banner’s a lot like Neville, but with, you know, anger issues. And Steve reminds me of an angsty Harry, all heroics, but much more naive. Thor’s still not here, of course. I’m hoping this will all go well, but I am worried.”

“Don’t be,” said Luna, confident and serene. “You’ll do well. It can’t get as bad as the war.”

Hermione laughed hollowly. “That’s true, I guess. What’s going on back home?”

“Harry’s a little confused. He thinks you’re on a mission, but he’s assuming you’ll be back by tomorrow. You never do anything longer than a week or two without him. That’s the only reason he hasn’t tried to call you. The Wizarding World itself is in an uproar. Sirius coming back - well, not only is it ridiculously bizarre , but its thrown the entire power structure of the Wizengamot into flux. It might be what pushes enough of the moderates into Harry’s camp, and let him make some real changes instead of duking it out with the purebloods every time. And Sirius really wants to see you and thank you. Everyone’s been celebrating like crazy.”

“Harry, well, you know that he can’t find out. He’ll blame himself, and that’s the last thing I want.

“Yes,” said Luna patiently, “But if you never get your magic back, then what?”

Hermione sighed. “I really don’t know Luna. I don’t.”

“Well, until then, just try to enjoy yourself, alright? You’re really helping them out there, and you’re among some amazing minds. And maybe I’ll stop by sometime,” replied Luna, winking. “I’d like to meet those gods you mentioned.”

 

lllllllllllllllllllllll

 

Darcy flailed the spatula around, using it as her microphone. Hermione was dancing along with her, while Natasha laughed at them from the blender. Florence and the Machine blasted from the speakers Tony had fixed all over the house.

“And I never wanted anything from you! Except everything you had and what was left after that too, oh,” she sang, smiling broadly. She spun around, only to crash face first into a wall of muscle.

Captain America stared back at her, his face flushing. “I’m so sorry, I was just coming to grab a cup of coffee,” he said, letting go of her.

Darcy could feel her face turn bright red. It never looked as attractive as it did on him though. “Oh, crap, no that was my fault, really.” She winced at the squeak in her voice.

“Actually Steve, you’re right on time. We’re making breakfast for everyone, if you’re interested?” asked Hermione, seeming completely at ease with Darcy’s mortification.

He grinned at her, a sight that made Darcy want to faint. “That sounds wonderful. How can I help?”

“Well, you can help Darcy with the pancakes,” said Hermione, shooting her a wink. Damn superheroes.

 

llllllllllllllllllllllllllll

 

When Tony walked in the kitchen of the main floor, he was just expecting to grab another cup of coffee before going to the lab (he had finished his first in the elevator.) Instead, he found Darcy wildly singing along to Florence and the Machine, with Hermione dancing with her, and Natasha smiling and blending something. Steve was in the corner, concentrating on what looked like pancakes.

He closed his eyes. Then he opened them again.

They were all still there.

“Am I dreaming? Or is this just my life now?”

“We’re just making a spot of breakfast for everyone,” said Hermione, smiling brightly. “Jarvis was about to call the others in.”

Tony fidgeted a bit, playing with the hem of his shirt. “Eating isn’t really my thing....”

Hermione gave him a look that would have given Coulson a run for his money. “Taste, then talk. No one had ever turned down a Weasley breakfast.”

“If I do, will you come down to the lab today?” asked Tony, grinning. He wanted to know if this girl really was as good as they said.

She smirked back. “Not a hardship. Go help Jarvis get the others down here.”

Within ten minutes, the others had all assembled there. Clint had dropped down from the air ducts once they had started on the bacon. Tony had dragged Bruce out of the lab within ten minutes and Jane had followed the scent of coffee. They all gathered around the food, shuffling awkwardly.

Hermione placed the last platter of food on the table, looking pleased with herself. The entire table was groaning under the weight of the food. Clint reached toward the bacon, but drew his hand back when a knife plunged into the butter next to his hand.

“So, dig in! Hopefully it all turned out alright,” Hermione said, ignoring the scene before her. She turned to Jane. “I’m a fan of your work Dr. Foster. I’d love to see some of your new stuff since I have the clearance.”

Jane, who had been poking the food warily, brightened up. “There’s about 10 people who don’t live here that I can show, so yes please!” Her brown eyes shined with excitement. “We can leave now -”

Darcy grabbed her arm. “This is food. You don’t get to leave if you don’t eat food. Jarv will lock you out.”

_Miss Lewis does have that power Dr. Foster, said Jarvis, sounding very mellow._

Jane pouted, then started attacked the food. The others followed her lead, and everyone seemed very content.

Tony couldn’t stop himself from staring. The last time something like this had happened, it had been with shawarma. Seeing them all except Thor together again, with more people felt good. He was excited, and not just for the science. These people were pretty interesting, but he still wasn’t too sure about Hermione Granger. He didn’t completely understand magic, and Tony Stark did not like things he couldn’t understand.

The door to the kitchen opened again, and Pepper walked in. Tony sat up, excited. “Hey Pep, have you met Hermione yet?” he asked, walking over to the red head.

Pepper shook the brunette’s hand quickly. “It’s so nice to have you here.” Then she turned back to Tony and handed him some folders. “Sign these by tonight.”

Hermione smiled and asked “Would you like some breakfast? We’ve made plenty.”

Pepper smiled tightly. “I have to go work. Tony, by tonight.” With a look, she turned around and walked out the door.

Natasha and Hermione exchanged a look, and Hermione started serving people again, creating mounds of food. Tony kind of wanted to hire her as his chef, but first he had to find out the truth.

“So, when do we get to here the rest of your story, sunshine? I’m sure you’ve read our files,” he drawled.

She grinned. “Just a tad, really. I don’t mind sharing mine though, Phil knows all of it.”

“Yeah, what have you been up to? Did the two of you hook up yet, Hermione?” asked Clint, playing with the fruit on his plate. Hermione blushed, and Natasha pulled out another knife and started stroking it.

“We aren’t like that,” Hermione said, laughing nervously. “But um, okay. Jane, did Darcy fill you in yet?”

Jane nodded. “She just told me about all the magic and stuff. I want to go flying!”

Hermione laughed and started pacing in front of the table. “I’ll try my best. Anyway, I guess I have to give you all some context first. The magical population of England is relatively small. Our government is getting better, but they used to have a very outdated way of thinking. Most magic users are born into. A pure-blood is someone who has descended from wizards, while half-bloods are a mix. Muggleborns were born to normal people without magic, but developed powers. That’s what I am. The wizard I mentioned before, who worked with Hitler, believed that magic users were better than normal people. He also wanted a pureblood supremacy. While we did defeat him, eventually another dark wizard came forth. He was widely known as You-Know-How, though he went by the moniker Lord Voldemort.”

“Flight of Death?” asked Bruce. When Hermione nodded, he frowned. “That doesn’t sound good.”

“It wasn’t. He killed many people, magic users and Muggles - people like yourselves. It was a dark time in our history, until he went after a small baby. He killed the baby’s parents, but the child was able to deflect the spell, destroying Voldemort and surviving. That baby grew up to be my friend, Harry Potter. We have a school of magic in a castle called Hogwarts,” she paused, letting Tony and Clint laugh at the name before continuing. “Harry and I, as well as our other friend Ron, ended up having to fight off Voldemort several times. It had been foretold that only Harry could ever kill him. Voldemort hadn’t died before, but his body had been destroyed. Eventually, he regained his body and started building his army again. When Harry tried to warn people about his return, he was shunned from society. We had to break into our own government offices to stop him from destroying everything. Thats how the man I brought back was killed originally. You’ve probably heard of the London attacks in the 1990s - Voldemort caused them. Anyway, there was a war, and I spent what should have been my last year of school on the run with my friends. Voldemort had anchored his soul and was almost immortal, so we had the wonderful job of trying to kill him. We were seventeen. I think that shows, more than anything else, how warped our society was. The purebloods, the people who had supported him in his first reign went back to him. The government fell, and all that was left were small amounts of rebels. They took over our school, and imprisoned Muggleborns, which was one of the reasons I left. There ended up being a huge battle there.”

She stopped talking then, and swallowed. Tony could see darkness in her eyes, a look that Rhodey had gotten before. A look that his new teammates had sometimes.

“We took control of our castle, and the rebel groups gathered. Voldemort drew all of his forces on the outskirts of the grounds. I can’t really explain what we faced - some of the creatures we fought would fit in well in Asgard. There were giant spiders, and giants, and creatures that could suck out your very soul. There were so few people on our side, that they let those of us who were of age fight as well. I mean, we had already fought for such a long time. A lot of younger students hide and tried to fight to. Too many people ended up dying in that battle, people I had learned from, learned with, and taught. My friends and family, all against that vicious monster.” She wiped her eyes.

Tony took the chance to look around the table. Clint was staring out the window, face hard. Natasha was blank, her hand clutching the knife. Next to her, Bruce was visibly trying to control himself, taking in deep breaths. Steve looked sad, as if the modern world had just showed how awful it was again. Jane was in tears, and Darcy looked as if she wanted to taser Voldemort herself.

“Harry left the castle to give himself up to Voldemort, to try to stop what happened. But due to some rather complicated spells and events and stuff, Harry didn’t die and Voldemort became mortal. We all duked it out again, and Harry killed Voldemort,” Darcy let out a whoop when she said this. “It’s funny, we thought maybe everything would be fixed after that. It was, for a bit. I went back to school, and learned how to cook. Harry joined the equivalent of SHIELD and started fixing a lot of things. But this was like your Civil War I guess. Change has been slow. I’ve helped Harry out on a lot of missions - that’s how I met Clint, Natasha and Phil. And, now I’m here for sometime.”

She glanced around awkwardly. “That’s it, I guess?”

Natasha walked to her side gracefully, and placed an arm on her shoulder. “Eat,” she said, dragging Hermione to the table and making her sit.

They sat in silence for a few moments, eating and thinking about the newest member of the Avengers. No one spoke until the floor creaked under the weight of a wheelchair.

“You wouldn’t happen to have any coffee here, would you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all liked it - I know it's been a while. If there are any mistakes, please let me know. I don't have a beta xd


	4. Answers? Maybe....

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magical Mayhem and Matchmaking

As soon as they heard that voice, they all jumped, except for Hermione and Natasha, who were both too badass. Certain things scare most superheroes though, and Phil Coulson was most definitely one of them. Clint actually managed to fall out of his chair, which Darcy found freaking hilarious. He scrambled up, and looked around wildly. Natasha, her face still straight somehow, passed him the coffeepot. He managed to pour out the cup of coffee without spilling it, and walked over to Coulson. Darcy’s inner matchmaker started stirring. Coulson was staring up at Clint, and it didn’t seem like just a case of coffee withdrawal.

Before anything potentially cute could happen, the little old lady from before blocked Clint with a glare. “He won’t be having any of that for quite sometime. And if you give him any, well, lets not talk about what’ll happen then.”

“That’s what Nat’s going to be like someday,” muttered Jane. Hermione and Darcy started giggling, but a look from Natasha and the old lady silenced Darcy. Hermione was completely unfazed, and went over to hug the newcomer.

“This is Madame Pomfrey. She’ll be here to help Phil recover from his injury. She’s helped my friends and I quite a bit,” said Hermione.

Madame Pomfrey sniffed. “Yes well, most of patients don’t accidently turn themselves into cats, thank Merlin.”

Tony grinned. “That seems likes a story I want to hear,” he said, sauntering over to her and gently leading her to sit down. “Sharing time!” That convienently left Coulson and Clint awkwardly alone, and Darcy made a mental note to conspire with Tony later. This could be really cute, or weird. Both probably? Although, a cellist had been mentioned earlier... Whatever. A strategy session was definitely necessary.

Jane decided that the new arrival meant she could drag Hermione down to the labs. Bruce and Tony agreed, and the group of smart people started talking about stuff that Darcy couldn’t even begin to think about. She thought about following them down, since technically her job was to keep them from blowing the tower up, but the idea was quickly derailed when Natasha touched her arm. “Steve and I are going to go spar, and you should come watch. We will start your training after.”

Darcy was torn between the thought of watching Steve fight, which was probably pretty damn hot, and actually  having to try to fight herself. Natasha wasn’t really giving her a choice though. “Alright, I’ll change and meet you guys in the gym, yeah?” This also left Clint and Coulson together, which could only be a good thing.

____________________

  


Hermione was in heaven. A much more techy heaven, but this is beyond anything she had imagined. Tony had all the best toys, and she hadn’t even tried any of them yet.

Jane pulled on her sleeve. “Come on, I really want to show you what we’ve been working on!” Laughing, Hermione let herself be dragged to the transparent computer screens. Jane quickly flicked through the screens and started sorting them. “Jarvis, can you pull up the initial specs Tony made and the data Darcy and I collected before?”

_“Certainly Dr. Foster. Shall I include the observations from the portal created with the Tesseract?”_

“Yes, thank you,” she said, not pausing in her perusal. She then turned to Hermione, apparently satisfied. “These are some of the readings and calculations we’ve been working on. I’d like you to take a look at these - there are some elements we haven’t been able to understand, but if your magic and the magic on Asgard is similar, I think you’d be able to help us.”

Hermione smiled at her. “Arithmancy - the combination of math and magic - is one of my specialities. I’ll look it over, and let you know. But I have to tell you, we’ve been working on that portal into what I suppose is the underworld, and I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a similar portal to Asgard. If I understand what Phil’s told me correctly, Loki never used the Bifrost - and seems to have other methods of travelling the universe.”

“Do you think you could find it, or open it?” asked Jane hopefully. Hermione bit back a laugh. She was just like Hermione - desperate to use her knowledge to help the people she loved.

“I will do my best, of course. I hope - “

Tony interrupted her just then. “If Foster’s done with you, it’s my turn! I wanna learn more about this magic shit.”

“I guess we are then,” Hermione replied, grinning as Jane rolled her eyes. “Lead the way, Mr. Stark.”

He wrinkled his nose. “I don’t do that mister thing. If you’re part of the team, you really need to act like it. Also, no handing me things, lets just get that cleared up now."

"Noted," replied Hermione, rolling her eyes. "Anyway, magic interferes with electronics - the two aren't very compatible. However, I think Loki used pure energy to activate the Tesseract, and then used the magic to power his portal. We might be able to use magic as a power source, which means there won't be a reaction."

Tony just handed her the tablet. "Show me."

Hermione began scrawling on it, adding equations. "I think this would be the best way to attempt the portal configuration. I'll need to talk to my people."

“Hang on, explain this bit -”

The two began animatedly arguing over the different variables and kept scratching on the tablet. Bruce and Jane joined them, and with Bruce’s limited knowledge, Jane’s data, Hermione’s experience, and Tony’s Tonyness, the four managed to make considerable headway.

______________

Darcy stared in horror at the clothes laid out on her bed - when Natasha had a chance to sneak them in, she had no idea.

Darcy Lewis did not wear spandex. She did not voluntarily exercise with superhumans. She had passed her SHIELD Training thank you very much, and anything beyond that was for agents, not babysitters. Even ones who lived in Stark Tower.

She picked up the top - or the scrap of cloth she assumed constituted a top. Underneath, a scrap of cream color paper.

Don’t even think about it.

Well. That was settled.

Ten minutes later, Darcy was heading to what felt like her doom. Despite JARVIS’s reassurances that, in fact, they did have in-house paramedics, she felt a little concerned.

The doom and gloom faded when she opened the gym doors to see something that the word fighting didn’t even begin to cover. Steve and Nat were at each other, ducking, weaving, like some kind of dance that only they knew. It was so raw that Darcy couldn’t look away if she tried - not that she did. Because as much as she hated spandex, Steve pulled it off admirably.

How long she stood there, she didn’t know. Eventually, Nat did something with her legs that pinned Steve down, and by some unspoken agreement they stopped.

“Hello Darcy.” She wasn’t surprised that the Black Widow has noticed her while fighting; she would have been worried otherwise to be honest. But apparently that didn’t extend to WWII soldiers, because Steve spun around. And stared.

At that moment, Darcy became acutely aware that A) the spandex did a great job showing off her admittedly spectacular rack and B) the red and blue accents on the black took on a different meaning here. Maybe she wasn’t the only matchmaker here…

“Hey guys,” she said, her voice a bit squeakier than she intended.

Steve’s eyes snapped back to Nat. “Hello,” he said, his voice much steadier, though the faint red coloring his face gave him away a bit.

Nat didn’t seem concerned by any of those, although Darcy was pretty sure she understood everything happening here better than the other two. “We can start your training then, can’t we Darce?,” she said. “I think we can start with boxing, Steve can teach you while I spot.”

“Sure?” Darcy replied - or asked. Something. The three moved to the punching bag.

Steve stood next to her, doing an admirable job of not actually looking at her. “This is the stance you’ll need to use,” showing her the position.

Darcy tried to copy him, but it didn’t really work. “Steve, you’ll have to adjust her,” called out Nat with just a hint of glee.

He hesitantly moved behind Darcy, moving her shoulders, her arms, his breath hot on her neck. “Now punch. Good, keep at it.”

Darcy directed all her nervous energy into that bag, and Steve stood by her, his hands gentle on her.

_I’m sorry to interrupt_ , said Jarvis, _but the others would like to meet as soon as possible_

Steve and Darcy broke apart quickly, whatever trance they were under broken. Muttered excuses led them to separate exits, all while Nat just stood and watched. And smiled.

______________

“Alright, Team Meeting Time!” cheered Tony.

Steve rolled his eyes. “Try to be serious, Tony.”

Tony rolled his eyes right back. “Okay, if you realized how much the fundamentals of everything I know just got changed, you’d be crazy too. And here I thought you wanted Thor back.”

“Do you have something?” Coulson asked, trying to stand up but failing.

The science gang looked at Hermione. She blushed, but stood up. By now, she was used to being the brains, and even if the Avengers were much smarter than her friends, and probably her, this was her forte - magical theory.

“We’ve been attempted to use just science to link Asgard and Earth. However, the Bifrost was a set connection - New Mexico must have some serious magic connection there. Loki on the other hand, from what I can tell, has more magic in him. He links to other flows and appears anywhere he wants, or at least to lesser magical spots. If we want to create something like the Bifrost connection, our best bet is at an existing spot. New Mexico is out since we can’t fix the Bifrost from here. But the Asgardians have visited Earth for some time, so I think we can find other magical spots or object to use as a conduit of sorts, like what Loki uses.”

“Like the Tesseract?” asked Steve, a little skeptical of anything like that catastrophe.

Hermione chose her words carefully. “Similar, but safer. Rune based probably, Nordic ones. I’ll need to call some friends, see if our connections in Norway can help. Keyed to Thor if we can.”

“How can you key it him?” asked Darcy. “You’ve never even met him.”

“I just need something his hammer touched,” Hermione replied. “it’s tied to him magically, so the imprint it left will be enough.”

Tony snorted. “Thank god we have our choice of rubble to choose from.”

Clint and Nat exchanged looks. “Um, I know you and Harry are on our side..” began Clint. “But who else are you bringing here?”

  
“Oh Harry doesn’t know about any of this, that would be.. bad. Trust me, these guys are part of my team.” answered Hermione, a new gleam in her eye.

**Author's Note:**

> I own nothing, although I have a pretty nifty Avengers Screensaver. First Fic on Ao3 (: Feedback = LOVE


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